Evidence of Alteration in the Zapruder Film
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Evidence of Alteration in the Zapruder Film Michael T. Griffith 2020 @All Rights Reserved Sixth Edition What follows are some of the indications that the Zapruder film has been altered. By "altered" I mean that certain frames have been removed and that others are composites. Why was the film altered? I think the main reason it was altered was to remove episodes and images that clearly and obviously showed there were more than three shots fired and thus multiple gunmen. * Numerous witnesses, over 40, including the escort patrolmen to the rear of the limousine, said the limousine stopped or slowed down markedly for at least a second or two. The Muchmore film shows the limousine's brake lights on for nine frames (about half a second) during the time period corresponding to about frames 311-319 of the Zapruder film (or Z311-319). However, this event is not seen in the Zapruder film. In fact, the limousine never comes close to performing this action in the current film. Opponents of alteration cite the virtually invisible, extremely brief slowing identified by physicist Dr. Luis Alvarez. This slowing occurs from about Z295-304, as the car decelerates from approximately 12 to 8 mph in half a second. However, in the film this event is so subtle that it is usually not noticed by viewers. No one appears to have noticed it, in fact, until Dr. Alvarez detected it through careful study and analysis of the film. It seems highly unlikely that this subtle, half-second slowing is what the witnesses were describing when they said the limousine came to a full stop or slowed down markedly. Here is a small sample of the eyewitness testimony: -- NBC reporter Robert MacNeil (rode in White House Press Bus): "The President's driver slammed on the brakes - after the third shot.” -- Dallas Police Department (DPD) policeman Earle Brown: "The first I noticed the [JFK's] car was when it stopped . after it made the turn and when the shots were fired, it stopped." -- DPD officer Bobby Hargis (one of the four motorcyclists escorting JFK’s limousine): "At that time [immediately before the head shot] the Presidential car slowed down. I heard somebody say 'Get going.' I felt blood hit me in the face and the Presidential car stopped almost immediately after that." -- DPD officer D.V. Harkness: "I saw the first shot and the President's car slow down to almost a stop…I heard the first shot and saw the President's car almost come to a stop and some of the agents piling on the car." -- DPD officer Douglas L. Jackson (one of the four motorcyclists escorting JFK’s limousine): ". the car just all but stopped, just a moment.” -- DPD officer J.W. Foster: "immediately after President Kennedy was struck . the car in which he was riding pulled to the curb." 1 -- Secret Service agent John Ready (riding in the follow-up car): "I heard what sounded like fire crackers going off from my post on the right front running board. The President's car slowed.” -- Ochus V. Campbell: ". observed the car bearing President Kennedy to slow down, a near stop, and a motorcycle policeman rushed up. Immediately following this, he observed the car rush away from the scene."-- Peggy Joyce Hawkins (on the steps of the Book Depository building): ". estimated that the President's car was less than 50 feet away from her when he was shot, that the car slowed down almost coming to a full stop." -- Mary Woodward, who was standing at the base of the grassy knoll: “Instead of speeding up, the car came to a halt.” Nothing like the stop or rapid slowdown described above appears in the current Zapruder film. Nothing. Throughout the current film the limousine seems to move at a steady speed. No stop or marked slowdown can be seen by viewing the film at normal speed, which of course is the speed at which the witnesses would have observed the motorcade. * The split-second slowing of the limousine from 12 to 8 mph in Z295-304 actually presents another problem for the film's authenticity. Though the slowdown is not very noticeable in the film, it represents a deceleration of about 0.37 g. Physicist Art Snyder notes that such a rapid slowing would be expected to toss things around, and he adds that most cars do not decelerate more than 0.4 g. When one examines the frames immediately after this deceleration, one sees no visible effect on the occupants from such a dramatic slowing. The fact that JFK is not moved by this deceleration is particularly interesting because he no longer had voluntary muscular control and should have been thrown forward. Yet for many frames before and after this event, he appears to be quite immobile. Nobody in the limousine shows any signs of being moved by the split-second deceleration. So, assuming Dr. Alvarez's data are accurate, the sudden reduction in speed that he detected would seem to constitute further evidence of alteration in the Zapruder film. Could it be that this half-second slowing is a remnant of what was originally a much longer, more noticeable deceleration? * Dr. Roderick Ryan believes he has discovered that the limousine is actually standing still in Z303 but is moving in Z302, even though the limousine appears to be moving at a nearly uniform speed in the film during this time (Noel Twyman, Bloody Treason, Rancho Santa Fe, CA: Laurel Publishing, 1997, pp. 158-159, 164-165). Notes Noel Twyman, Experience tells us that the limousine could not have decelerated from 11 miles per hour to a complete stop in 1/18 second. (Bloody Treason, p. 165) Dr. Ryan made this discovery by analyzing the blurring of background images in the two frames. Moreover, Dr. Ryan's son, who also works in motion picture film technology, studied the film and confirmed his father's discovery (Bloody Treason, p. 159). In case some might be wondering about Dr. Ryan's background, he is a retired scientist from Kodak. He holds a Ph.D. from USC, majoring in cinema and communications. He worked for Kodak for 29 years. He spent his entire career in motion picture film technology. He is a recipient of the Scientific and Engineering Award from the Society of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He has authored numerous books on motion picture technology and several articles on motion picture science. In addition, he is a 2 Fellow of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and a member of the Committee for Selection of Scientific and Technical Awards, Special Effects, Documentary Films. * One clear indication of alteration in the Zapruder film is the fact that in the Zapruder film Jackie Kennedy goes only slightly beyond the middle point of the trunk before retreating back to her seat, whereas in the Orville Nix film she goes noticeably farther out on the trunk. This means that numerous frames have been removed from this segment of the Zapruder film. Z380 is the frame before Jackie begins to retreat from the trunk. She is barely halfway past the middle of the trunk in this frame. Her right hand is slightly beyond the middle point of the trunk—the rest of her body is clearly behind the middle point. Moreover, she is nowhere near Agent Clint Hill. Her right hand is at least 12 inches from Agent Hill, and the rest of her body is nowhere near him. In stark contrast, in the Nix film Jackie clearly goes much farther out on the truck and gets close to Agent Hill. Z380 Nix Film Milicent Cranor, who has a background in medical forensic publishing, discusses this issue in detail in her article “JFK Assassination Film: Proof of Tampering?” * In the inner sprocket area of the film, the fender of the motorcycle to the left rear of the limousine can be seen to move erratically, starting at Z312. This is a ghost image. No other motorcycle’s fender behaves in such an odd manner in the inner sprocket area of the film (the movement is not visible in the frame area). This erratic movement indicates that this portion of the film has been heavily edited. Dr. David Mantik discusses this erratic movement in his three- part video presentation Zapruder Film Hoax: The Reel Story or the Real Story? (His discussion on this issue starts at about 09:50 in Part 2 and resumes in Part 3.) * In Z353-356 we see Malcolm Summers diving to the ground. Summers is to the right of James Altgens. In Z353 Summers' left leg is extended most of the way out. But, in the very next frame, Z354, amazingly, the foreleg is bent markedly backward. Can anyone flex their foreleg to that degree so quickly, in 1/18th of a second? In Z355 Summers' left leg is bent even farther backward. Can anyone move their foreleg that much in 1/9th of a second (from its position in Z353 to its position in Z355)? Then, in Z356, the left foot seems to be on the ground. Can anyone whip their left foreleg backward and then put their foot on the ground in the space of three frames, 1/6th of a second? 3 * Another seemingly impossible action in the Zapruder film is the extremely rapid and precise movement of Charles Brehm's son in Z277-287. In Z277 Brehm junior is standing behind his father. Then, from Z277-287, or in just over half a second, he bolts out from behind his father and comes to stand beside him, clapping his hands no less.